(19)
By Abraham Eli
This study was first taught on September 22, 2019
Topic: The Assessment of the Churches (17): The Church in Sardis (Alive But Dead)
(use the audio to study)
Background
The last time we discussed "<strong>The State of the Church Today</strong>", which has been a while now, we looked at those in the Church in Thyatira, and by implication, those of the church today, who would be rewarded with the authority to rule the nations and the Morning Star. We noted that those to be rewarded are:
<li>1. Those who will overcome through thick and thin; those who will overcome by being overcome, themselves, by the Lord, as they voluntarily surrender to Him, instead of opposing Him; and, those who overcome the Lord by conquering His heart, as David did, and God said of him, "<em>I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will.</em>" (<strong>Acts 13:22</strong>). We saw how Jacob owned up to his identity as a sinner, deceiver, and supplanter, an act of repentance, and in return received the blessing of God (<strong>Proverbs 28:13</strong>). We also noted what the Lord said in <strong>Matthew 21:43-44</strong>, that those who voluntarily surrender to Him will be broken, but saved; whereas those who refuse will be crushed irredeemably.</li>
<li>2. Those who will keep on doing the Will of God regardless of the challenges or obstacles they may face. These are people who will hold on to God and His word in faith in the face of trials, tribulations and temptations. It will take a personal conviction of the veracity and infallibility of the word of God, and the reality of the existence of God and who He says He is, to hold on to Him no matter what comes your way!</li>
<li>3. Those who will keep on doing the Will of God until the very end (either till the Lord returns or till they return to the Lord). These are people who not only start will, but more importantly, finish well; people who may have started poorly, but finished well; people who may have stuttered along the way, yet finished well. What is clear is that you finish well, no matter how poorly you may have started, or the stuttering along the way. Two major resources to help a believer in the Lord succeed in this regard are, prayer (which does not change God, but you), and repentance and restitution when you fall along the way!<li>
We concluded that the rewards of the Lord are His to give, and only those who play by His rule, not the rules of men, shall receive them. So, if you have not surrendered to the Lord, stop the struggles today, and just simply surrender; if you have not yet conquered the heart of God, start today, by focusing on doing the will or pleasure of God; if you have not started doing the will of God, start doing it; if you have not started well, or have stuttered along the way, you don’t have to start all over again, but you can work towards finishing well, by taking advantage of the resources of repentance and restitution, and prayer, and get back on track! Finally, if you have been doing the will of God, keep at it and don’t give up until the very end!
Scripture Text(s)
Revelation 3:1-6
We come to the Lord’s letter to the 'angel' of the Church in Sardis, and find a church with delusions of a 'great reputation', being brought to the stark reality of its true, but sorry state! May the Holy Spirit help us to appreciate the Lord’s assessment of the Church in Sardis, and its application to, and implications for, us, today's Christians, Amen.
In looking at the assessment of the Church in Sardis by the Lord, we come to screeching halt at the end of the first verse, when we read, "<em>I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive but you are dead.</em>" Let us make it clear at this point that it is not about a church as in a building, or as an organization, that the Lord is referring to here, but a church as in the people who claim that Jesus is their Saviour and Lord, who are either gathered in a locality in one place, or who are scattered all over the earth, that we are referring to. Thus, the Lord is saying, that He has found today’s Christians (at least a large number) who have a name or reputation as being alive, but in reality, they are dead! How can this be?
James 2:26; Ezekiel 37:1-8; Genesis 2:7; Jude 1:12; 2 Timothy 3:1-7; 1 Timothy 5:5-6; Ephesians 2:1-3; 1 Timothy 3:15; Matthew 24:11-12, 24; John 1:4; 6:63, 68; 1 Corinthians 2:1-5; John 17:3; Jeremiah 9:23-24; Ephesians 5:1-14.
Conclusion
The Lord's assessment of the Church in Sardis, is His assessment of many of today's churches (that is, Christians who are gathered to worship God or who are scattered all around the world, engaging in one activity or the other). He sees a people who think that they are alive, vibrant, fervent, active, and effective for the Lord, yet they are dead! The Lord is saying that when He comes into our meetings, He finds that instead of light, He is in darkness; instead of the vibrancy of life, He is in a graveyard; instead of the fervency of the Spirit, He sees a place where vagabonds are in charge and everything is rowdy and disorderly; instead of truth being spoken, He finds lies and lying wonders on display with impunity; instead of the glory of God, He sees Satan being glorified. What an indictment!<br>
This is the state of the church today; where we cannot differentiate between a worldly gathering and a gathering of Christians (save a few smatterings of 'Jesus' now and again); where falsehood and iniquity abound among a people who name the name of the Lord (<strong>2 Timothy 2:19</strong>); where false prophecy and human predictions form the message rather than the word of life; where comedians are in the pulpit and entertainment is the order of the day, instead of sobriety and godly reverence; where the message of the gospel which should transform sinners into saints has been transformed into a message of false prosperity which breeds covetousness and greed; where placebo and lying wonders have taken the place of true miracles, holiness and righteousness; where the object of the meeting is what they can get (from God and anyone else), not God Himself; where the believers are doubters and have no personal relationship with the God and His Christ.<br>
When the things that were once dead and that should stay dead are now waking up (sin, iniquity, immorality, sensuality, hatred, pride, etc.); and the things that were alive and that should be alive and living are now dying and even dead (righteousness, holiness, humility, agape love, etc.), we know that we have a problem. We must turn and look to God to save us once again!
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